Poultry nest pad washer and method

ABSTRACT

A washer and method for cleaning poultry pads or similar items includes a tub which rotates around a horizontal axis. The tub is mounted on a wheeled frame for towing by a car, tractor or other vehicle. Dirty, soiled pads are placed in the tub on-site and the door is then secured. As the tub rotates during its washing cycle the pads are sprayed by water jets positioned along the interior central water conduit. Water collected in a drain is discharged at each revolution through an open gate valve located on the bottom of the drain. Baffles inside the tub agitate the pads and water, thus improving the cleaning ability of the washer.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention herein pertains to commercial washing devices andparticularly pertains to washers for cleaning poultry pads.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART AND OBJECTIVES OF THE INVENTION

Poultry nest pads as used on poultry farms have generally been formed ofsynthetic materials in recent years. Such pads are usually moreexpensive than previous straw and natural fiber pads but are moredurable and can be used for longer periods of time. However, such padsbecome soiled and caked with droppings and other debris and requirecleaning to maintain the poultry houses in a safe, sanitary condition.In the past such poultry pads have been cleaned by passing them along aconveyor having a high pressure spray as shown in U.S. Pat. No.5,551,460. Other pad cleaning devices are illustrated in U.S. Pat. Nos.5,259,560 and 4,453,386. However, it has been found that high pressurespraying will not completely remove the droppings and debris due in partto the thickness of the poultry pads. Also, crushing or pulverizing thedroppings during the cleaning process likewise does not thoroughly cleanthe pads since pulverizing sometimes increases, rather than decreasesthe tenacity of the attached debris.

Thus, in view of the problems and disadvantages associated with priorart cleaning methods and equipment, it is an objective of the presentinvention to provide a poultry pad washer which can be easily conveyedsuch as by a vehicle from one location to another and can be set up andoperated on site by a single worker.

It is yet another objective of the present invention to provide apoultry pad washer which has a large capacity and is quick and efficientin its cleaning operation.

It is still another objective of the present invention to provide apoultry pad washer which has a rotatable tub to “tumble” the poultrypads during the washing process.

It is yet another objective of the present invention to provide apoultry pad washer having pivotal side guards to protect frominadvertent accidents and injury during washing.

It is a further objective of the present invention to provide a poultrypad washer which can be easily emptied and refilled after washing forthe next washing cycle.

Various other objectives and advantages of the present invention willbecome apparent to those skilled in the art as a more detaileddescription is set forth below.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The aforesaid and other objectives are realized by providing a washerfor poultry pads and the like which has a wheeled frame and a vehiclehitch affixed thereto. Positioned on the frame is a tub which rotatesaround its horizontal axis as defined by a central interior waterconduit. Pivotal side guards are mounted on each side of the washer tubto prevent accidents and injuries to workers as the tub rotates. In use,the washer is pulled by a vehicle such as a pickup truck to a suitablelocation near a poultry barn. A water source such as a well or the likeis then located and a hose such as a conventional garden hose is thenconnected to the water source and to an electric booster pump mounted onthe frame which in turn is connected to a 110V power source. The door onthe tub is opened and soiled poultry pads (300-400) are placed therein.The door is then secured and the small horsepower (5½ hp) drive engine,which may be gasoline or diesel but could also be an electric motor, isthen started and the pump is activated. As the tub rotates the centralwater conduit sprays the tumbling pads with water. A drain gate valve atthe bottom of the tub remains opened to allow dirty water tocontinuously exit at each tub revolution. Baffles within the tub provideagitation to the pads as they are tumbled. Once a sufficient time haspassed (such as twenty minutes depending on the number of pads washed),the engine is stopped and the pump turned off. The tub door is thenopened and the washed pads are removed for drying. Additional dirty padsare then placed in the tub and the wash cycle is repeated.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 demonstrates a side elevational view of the poultry pad washerwith the guard in a closed position and the tub door closed;

FIG. 2 illustrates a front elevational view of the washer as shown inFIG. 1 with the side guards partially opened;

FIG. 3 shows a rear elevational view of the tub washer as shown in FIG.2;

FIG. 4 features a side elevational view of the washer with the sideguards removed for clarity; and

FIG. 5 depicts a side view of the washer as shown in FIG. 1 with theside guards removed and with the tub and other components seen incross-section.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS AND OPERATION OF THEINVENTION

For a better understanding of the invention and its operation, turningnow to the drawings, preferred pad washer 10 is shown in FIG. 1 havingframe 11 which is preferably 13′ long (3.96 m) and 5′ wide (1.524 m)with wheels 12, 12′ (FIG. 2) attached for towing by vehicle hitch 13.Rotatably positioned on frame 11 is washer tub 14, having side guards15, 15′ which rotate or open about posts 17, 17′ (FIG. 3) respectively.Side guards 15, 15′ which include screen wire are thus pivotally joinedto frame 11 and can be opened as seen in FIG. 2 about one-half open orclosed as shown in FIG. 1. Normally, side guard 15′ remains closed atall times, whereas side guard 15 can be opened for loading and unloadingpoultry pads into tub 14. Tub 14 has a preferred length of 6′ (1.828 m)and an overall diameter of 4′ (1.22 m) and is formed such as by weldingfrom thin steel plate stock.

Tub 14 is supported by bearings 42, 42′ on stanchions 18, 18′respectively which are rigidly affixed to frame 11 (FIGS. 2 and 3) forrotation around the horizontal axis of tub 14 as defined by waterconduit 22 (shown in FIG. 5).

Tub door 20 as seen in FIG. 4 includes a series of securing straps 21,preferably four, and a plurality (preferably three) of hinges 23. Handle24 is used to manually open door 20 for loading and unloading purposes.Tub drain 30 is wedge-shaped and is affixed to the bottom of tub 14, asalso shown in FIG. 4. Gate valve 31 which has a 3″ (7.62 cm) opening canbe manually opened and closed. Water contained within tub 14 is easilyand quickly dumped each time the tub rotates through gate valve 31 whichis open during the washing cycle and which can be closed when not inuse. Along the bottom of tub 14 as shown in FIG. 5 are a series of 1.5″(3.8 cm) openings 33 which allow water to flow into drain 30.

Jets 27 are positioned on water conduit 22 which is preferably 2″ (5.08cm) schedule 80 pipe and provide a high pressure spray as items such aspoultry pads therein are tumbled as tub 14 rotates. Baffles 36 which areapproximately 42″ (106.68 cm) long and approximately 12″ (30.48 cm) highformed from ¼″ flat plate steel extend radially into tub 14 and provideagitating action to the water and pads within tub 14.

Tub 14 is driven by preferably, a small Honda 5½ hp gasoline internalcombustion engine 40 as shown in FIG. 4, although an electric motor, ordiesel engine or other engines may also be used. Engine shaft 45 isjoined by chain drive 44 to front tub shaft 41 which is rigidly affixedto tub 14 such as by welding or the like. Front shaft 41 is mountedwithin bearing 42 atop stanchion 18 as earlier discussed. Chain drive 44is connected to engine shaft 45 which rotates a chain (not seen) ofchain drive 44.

Conventional 110V electric booster pump 50 mounted on frame 11 increasesthe water pressure from a well or other water source (not shown) whichit receives through inlet pipe 51 (FIG. 4). Pump 50 thereafter directsthe water through outlet pipe 52 which is connected to central waterconduit 22 as seen in FIGS. 4 and 5. High pressure water so deliveredpasses through spray nozzles 27 where it impinges pads or other itemscontained within tub 14 during the washing cycle.

The preferred method of using washer 10 includes the steps of towingwasher 10 to a convenient site by car, truck or other vehicle. Onceconveniently located and stabilized with standard screw jacks, or thelike (not seen) as needed, an electrical connection is made with pump 50and a water source such as a well is located for inlet pipe 51. Next,side guard 15 is then opened for easy access to door 20 which isapproximately 64″ (162.56 cm) long and 20″ (50.8 cm) tall. Securingstraps 21 are then removed and door 20 is manually opened using handle24. Soiled, dirty poultry pads or other items are then placed into tub14 whereupon door 20 is then closed and secured with straps 21. Sideguard 15 is repositioned (closed) for safety purposes. Next, pump 50having been supplied with a water source or reservoir is then turned on.Thereafter, engine 40 is started and tub 14 is allowed to rotate thusspraying, tumbling and cleaning the soiled pads therein. Detergents orother cleaning assistants can be added during loading of the poultrypads as desired. Gate valve 31 has been opened to drain the dirty watertherein during each revolution of tub 14. Preferred tub 14 which isapproximately 72″ (182.88 cm) long and 48″ (121.92 cm) in diameter, willhold approximately 300-400 pads and will take approximately twentyminutes to thoroughly clean about 400 pads. Once sufficient time haspassed, depending on the number of pads loaded, pump 50 is turned off asis motor 40. Side guard 15 is opened (pivoted away from tub 14), as isdoor 20, and the washed pads therein removed. Additional pads can beadded and the wash cycle steps repeated as often as needed. Thereafter,gate valve 31 can be closed, electrical and mechanical disconnectionsmade as needed, the screw jacks removed, and washer 10 can then be movedto a new location.

The illustrations and examples provided herein are for explanatorypurposes and are not intended to limit the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:
 1. A washer comprising: a frame, a tub, said tub rotatably mounted on said frame, a side guard, said side guard attached to said frame, a water conduit, said water conduit positioned in said tub, a spray jet, said spray jet communicating with said water conduit for spraying items in said tub.
 2. The washer of claim 1 further comprising a baffle, said baffle positioned in said tub to agitate items therein as said tub rotates.
 3. The washer of claim 1 further comprising an engine, said engine connected to said tub for rotating the same.
 4. The washer of claim 3 further comprising a chain drive, said chain drive connected to said motor, said chain drive for rotating said tub.
 5. The washer of claim 1 further comprising a pump, said pump mounted proximate said frame for delivering water to said water conduit.
 6. The washer of claim 1 wherein said side guard is pivotally attached to said frame.
 7. The washer of claim 1 further comprising a pair of wheels, said wheels attached to said frame.
 8. The washer of claim 1 further comprising a vehicle hitch, said vehicle hitch attached to said frame.
 9. A washer for transportation to a field site for cleaning pads thereat comprising: a frame, a side guard, said side guard attached to said frame, a pair of wheels, said wheels joined to said frame, a vehicle hitch, said vehicle hitch joined to said frame for connecting to a vehicle for pulling the same, a rotatable tub, said tub mounted on said frame, a pump, a water conduit, said water conduit positioned in said tub, said pump connected to said water conduit, and a motor, said motor connected to said tub to rotate the same.
 10. The washer of claim 9 further comprising: a chain drive, said motor and said tub joined to said chain drive.
 11. The washer of claim 9 wherein said side guard is pivotally joined to said frame. 